'Specialized is really stepping things up this year' - Geerike Schreurs joins former Unbound Gravel adversaries Villafañe and Langvad on off-road super team

The decision process to change teams as a pro cyclist, no matter what the discipline, can be tangled with questions and uncertainties. For Geerike Schreurs, the move from one of the world's top women's teams, SD Worx-ProTime, to a rebuilding Specialized Off-road team for 2026 was "the easiest decision ever".

The Specialized Off-road squad already had three-time Life Time Grand Prix champion Sofia Gomez Villafañe and six-time mountain bike world champion Annika Langvad on the women's side. Bringing Dutch powerhouse Schreurs on board with a focus on gravel made this one of the first superteams for women in off-road racing.

It also doesn't hurt that the squad has a triple threat on the men's side as well, three-time Cape Epic champion Matt Beers now racing alongside five-time Leadville Trail 100 MTB winner Keegan Swenson and European gravel champion Mads Würtz Schmit. From training to racing, Schreurs was ready for the new year.

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"Everyone on the team has already accomplished so much and is so well known, and I’m really looking forward to spending time with them, learning from them, and being around that level. It’s great to be part of such a big team, and I’m excited to be part of the development of the gravel programme," Schreurs told Cyclingnews from Colombia, where she is taking part in her own training block.

All six riders will have a team camp next month in Spain, ahead of the season-opener at Santa Vall. Last year, Langvad swept both stages and the GC for women, while Schreurs took second overall. Schmidt took part in stage 1 for PAS Racing and finished fourth.

Schreurs catapulted to prominent podium finishes in her debut season on gravel, going second overall at the Traka 360 and Unbound Gravel 200 and third at The Rift, among her many results. The Dutch rider increased her output with nine podiums last year, including wins at Falling Leaves Lahti, second places at The Rift, CORE4 and Lauf Gravel Worlds, all part of the Gravel Earth Series, plus wins at two of the UCI Gravel World Series races in Belgium and Austria.

Even with a string of GES successes leading to fourth overall in the global series and a comeback at Unbound from a broken elbow, she called the win at Wörthersee Gravel, a UCI race, a top highlight.

"My favourite accomplishment, I'd say, is my UCI win in Austria. It wasn’t a huge race, but I had a tough period leading up to it. Being able to come back from such a low point and let go of something negative made it a big personal achievement for me."

While the chemistry as teammates will be new, all riders were familiar with each other. Schreurs' former SD Worx teammate, Anna van der Breggen, was a teammate with Langvad for one of the Cape Epic victories, so Schreurs had heard stories of the MTB legend. Then last year, Langvad joined SD Worx at a team camp last January and that is where the two became friends.

"She has a lot of experience and a very strong mindset, which are definitely things I can learn from. I’ve really enjoyed the time we’ve spent together, not just talking about cycling and racing, but also about more personal, non-cycling topics. That’s personally nice and relaxing for me, especially when so much of our time is usually focused on upcoming races and performance," Schreurs said about Langvad.

Schreurs has raced many times in the US against Villafane, though at Leadville Trail 100 she said she struggled with the altitude and the 2023 winner went on to fourth place for elite women. They've battled twice at Unbound Gravel 200, with former race winner Villafane going third and Schreurs outsprinting Langvad for seventh place.

"Being on the same team makes it even more exciting. We’re still in a bit of a pilot phase in terms of how we come together as a team," Schreurs said, noting that recovery from a broken elbow ahead of the Emporia, Kansas race was frustrating to deal with.

"In a race like Unbound, so many things can happen over such a long day. That said, we have a very strong squad, and if we can bundle our strengths together, I think we can race more tactically and aim for some really good results. I’m definitely excited to return to Kansas, and hopefully this time with a healthy lead-up, no broken elbows or other injuries like I had in 2025."

Even with a number of huge results and the name of a big team on her jersey, Schreurs was the only gravel rider on the Women's WorldTour squad for the past two seasons, so her efforts at international races were solo adventures. In contrast, a smaller team of just six riders adds a high number of resources she was lacking before.

"For me personally, being part of a team with full support makes a huge difference, and Specialized is really stepping things up this year. We have a whole team behind us, with mechanics, soigneurs, performance coaches, plus people handling media, logistics, and travel. It allows me to fully focus on racing and training.

"In my first year I did a lot myself. I was basically my own mechanic, soigneur, manager, and athlete all in one. That worked at the time, but as the level in gravel keeps rising and everything becomes more professional. I feel really privileged to be part of the Specialized Off-Road team, where everything is so well organized."

Plus, the 36-year old can also continue to race on familiar equipment, having used Specialized for bikes on SD Worx.

"​​I really love the Specialized bikes since I first started riding them back in January 2024. I like how they’re always innovating, improving, and actually listening to rider feedback. For me, it’s super important to keep the same equipment; I feel really comfortable on it, and it’s nice not having to figure out or adapt to new things.

The same goes for SRAM. It’s a brand I really enjoy working with. RockShox is new for me, so I’m excited to learn more about it."

After Sanrta Vall, Schreurs said she'd travel to the US to compete at The Mid South in March in Oklahoma and return later for CORE4 and Lauf Gravel Worlds. "Of course, Unbound, that's the race I'm looking forward to the most this year."

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